1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to dispensers for chewing gum or bubble gum, more particularly to personal dispensers for stick chewing gum.
2. Description of the Related Art
Personal dispensers for chewing gum or bubble gum are known in the prior art. U.S. Pat. No. 4,465,208 to Buban et al. discloses a dispenser with a cover whose central region is cut away to afford access to a stick of gum which is urged against the cover by a spring-mounted platform. The user dispenses the gum by placing his thumb against the stick of gum and pushing it toward a slot at the end of the dispenser. The gum is susceptible to loss of freshness and to damage from moisture or foreign objects due to the exposure of the gum through the cut away region.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,056,683 to O""Brien et al. discloses a cardboard dispenser with a paper sling which extends from the inside of the dispenser through the dispensing slot. As the user pulls on the sling, a stick of gum is carried by the sling through the slot. Because this container is made of cardboard, the gum contained within is more susceptible to moisture damage than it would be in a container constructed of a non-permeable material, such as plastic. Additionally, a cardboard container lacks durability. Because the dispenser contains no mechanism such as a spring and platform to urge the gum against a wall of the dispenser, the gum rests loosely within the container and can fall out of the dispensing slot when it is not intended to be dispensed.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,353,956 to Wilson discloses a dispenser with a hinged lid. The user flips open the lid, then slides an ejector with his or her thumb to expose all of the sticks of gum contained in the dispenser at once. The user must then pull the desired stick or sticks of gum away from the other sticks, tap the remaining sticks back into place if they have become dislodged by the action of pulling away the desired stick, then close the lid.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,649,642, of which I am a named inventor, discloses a gum dispenser in the form of a rectangular parallelopiped-shaped container having space for a plurality of sticks of gum between a movable platform and one of the container walls. Adjacent the wall is a slot-shaped opening through which a stick of gum can be ejected. The platform is urged in the direction of the wall by a spiral spring. The apparatus also contains a slidable operator in the vicinity of the wall which is mounted so as to engage only the single stick of gum which is in position to be ejected. Sliding the operator toward the opening propels the uppermost stick of gum in the direction of the opening and through it by a sufficient distance to permit it to be grasped and removed from the dispenser. Retracting the operator permits the platform, driven by the coil spring, to move the group of sticks of gum in the direction of the wall, thereby positioning the new uppermost stick of gum so that it can be ejected by the next forward movement of the operator.
The chewing gum dispenser of the present invention is an improvement on the dispenser disclosed in my prior patent. It has been found in practice that the spring-and-platform arrangement which is employed for positioning the sticks of gum stored within the dispenser for dispensing at the option of the user is not as stable as might be desired. In use, it is my experience that the dispenser jams on occasion, thus precluding the user from dispensing a stick of gum, as desired. This problem is in part associated with the construction and configuration of the operator which applies an unbalanced force on the sticks of gum within the dispenser during operation to dispense the uppermost stick.
The gum dispenser of the present invention includes a substantially box-shaped container in the general form of a rectangular parallelopiped. The container has opposed first and second side walls oriented to be parallel with the sticks of gum stored therein. Third and fourth side walls extend between the first and second walls and a pair of end walls completes the structure of the container. One of these end walls defines a slot or opening slightly exceeding the width and thickness of a stick of gum for the ready dispensing of one stick at a time through that opening.
The box-shaped container encompasses a pair of swing arms, each being hinged to the first wall of the container and interlocking in a scissoring fashion. A tensioning device, in the form of a spring, rubber or elastic band, extends between the swing arms and draws them together. The swing arms are constructed and configured to provide a pair of opposing ends which support the sticks of gum within the container at positions adjacent to the ends thereof, thereby providing a more balanced force in urging the sticks of gum into position for dispensing. When sticks of chewing gum are placed between the swing arms and the second wall of the container, the tensioning device draws the swing arms together and thereby urges the sticks of gum against each other and toward the second wall of the container.
The dispenser includes a top panel or end wall having a slot at its junction with the second wall, through which slot the sticks of gum are individually dispensed. The second wall, or operator wall, of the container slidably mounts an operator to provide association of the manual movement of the operator with the dispensing of an individual stick of chewing gum. When a user slides the operator toward the dispensing slot in the end wall, a seat engages a leading stick of gum and causes the stick of gum to partially emerge through the dispensing slot in the container. In this manner each stick of chewing gum is individually dispensed. When the operator is drawn back toward the base panel, the operator seat is repositioned to receive the next stick of chewing gum.
The base panel of the container is configured with a platform upon which the sticks of chewing gum rest. In its retracted position, the seat is positioned at or slightly below the height of the platform, allowing the leading stick of gum to advance and be received by the seat.
The dispenser is preferably constructed of plastic or other similar rigid, non-permeable, durable material.
Due to the fact that the only fixed opening in the dispenser is the dispensing slot, the dispenser helps to protect the gum from deterioration due to moisture or foreign objects, and the freshness of the gum is prolonged. Because the gum is securely urged against the wall of the dispenser, the gum will not fall out of the dispenser when it is undesirable for it to do so. Because the operator seat engages only the leading stick of gum, only one piece of gum is dispensed at a time.